multitude of voyces

Commentary

‘This work draws from the Baul tradition of Bengal and their syncretic spirituality which brings together influences from across Vedic (Hindu), Buddhist and Sufi (Islamic) philosophy and practice. Baul Sangeet (Baul ‘Song’) is a spiritual folk tradition that has been practised since at least the 15th Century. In modern times within India it is strongly associated with Santiniketan (pronounced with a ‘sh’) in West Bengal, a town founded by Nobel Laureate, writer and composer Rabindranath Tagore. ‘Santiniketan’ means ‘Haven of Peace’.

Baul Sangeet is typically performed by ascetics who dedicate their lives to the spiritual practices of the Bauls, the primary public expression of which is their music. Much of Baul Sangeet is metrically characterised by an underlying cross-rhythm of three against two, which may be exploited for melodic or rhythmic intrigue. This complex heartbeat-like pulse also speaks to me, in this context, of the ways in which apparently divergent spiritual and cultural ‘rhythms’ may come together to create a richer, more beautiful texture of experience. The songs of the Bauls poetically explore the relations of love, devotion, faith and yearning for the divine, often through mundane or even romantic metaphors.

Jonomo Morono Hobe Nibarono is a lesser-known Baul Sangeet that emphasises the Vedic conception of the material world as maya, illusory and temporary in nature. It is held that beyond this temporary physical world, there is a future of spiritual unity and bliss for the faithful. 

The Bengali words and ‘Anglicised’ melody of the Refrain are adapted from the original, and so close are the beliefs to those of Christians that the English ‘translation’ that follows is not my own but is itself adapted directly from Revelation [the last of the Books of the (Christian) New Testament. ‘Revelation’ uses imagery to describe the revealing of divine mysteries].

The melody of the verse is my own composition derived from the original Baul Sangeet, and the words are adapted from Revelation chapters 7, 18, 21 and 22. Not only does the vision of Life Eternal here expressed echo that described in the Baul Sangeet (and in broader Vedic spiritual mythologies), but Verse 3 speaks directly to the Hindu emphasis on detachment from earthly things as a spiritual practice. I conclude with the line from Revelation chapter 22 verse 4, encompassing the belonging of people to the divine, and evoking the South Asian cultural metaphor that one’s destiny is written on one’s forehead.’

Commentary text © Dr Anita Datta 2023